FOR PROFESSIONALS

Driving while intoxicated is treated by Texas courts as either a misdemeanor or a felony offense, depending on the prior record of the accused and the specifics of the case. A DWI charge is a serious matter that should be dealt with immediately. At Sumpter & Gonzalez, we spend a great deal of times in an extensive interview process that helps uncover facts that could be vital to your defense. Because memories fade, we endeavor to begin our interview as soon as possible after the arrest. Some cases are resolved quickly because of points of error in the prosecution's case, and others take more time and investigation to get a good result.

The law in Texas is rather strict concerning DUI's and DWI's:

First Offense
    -up to a $2,000 fine
    -72 hours to 180 days in jail
    -driver's license suspension: 90 days to 1 year

Second Offense
    -up to a $4,000 fine
    -30 days to 1 year in jail
    -driver's license suspension: 180 days to 2 years

Third Offense
    -up to a $10,000 fine
    -2 to 10 years in penitentiary
    -driver's license suspension: 180 days to 2 years

If you're thinking about not fighting your DWI charge and pleading guilty, here are a few reasons that might change your mind:



The average cost for pleading guilty is around $7,000 not including attorney's fees and how much the insurance company will charge you, which could be $1,000 or more for the next 3 years.

Moral character
While DWI is not a crime that is considered per se a violation of moral character for the purposes of immigration, it is certainly something that affects professionals who are applying to graduate school or licensure as a doctor or a lawyer. A conviction for a DWI, as far as how it will affect a practicing lawyer, will result in the State Bar becoming interested in why you have an untreated substance problem or why you choose to brake the law subjecting you to possible disciplinary proceedings or sanctions. The other concerns that DWI convictions raise on moral character in terms of health care professionals and others who use decision making and judgment, a crime like this is directly to a questionable loss of judgment. So while it may not be related to or indicating that someone has NO moral character, it certainly makes professional organizations question your judgment. For healthcare professionals it would most certainly involve you having to prove that you don’t have a substance abuse problem or being forced to seek treatment.

Substance Abuse Counseling or Treatment
Any arrest for DWI will result in almost an automatic referral to Community Evaluation Services (CES) to determine whether or not you have a substance abuse problem. At the low end, this requires you to go get an assessment and then follow up with any treatment that is recommended. This can be anywhere from 8 hours of drug and alcohol education to 24 hours of intensive education and perhaps inpatient treatment depending on the severity of the substance abuse problem. It can be as time and labor intensive as they want to make it, depending on how they diagnose your problem. They can also require you to attend AA meetings from once a week to as often as every day.

Supervision
Depending on the severity of your diagnosed problem, your age, and the conditions of your arrest, the judge can issue pretrial supervision as a condition of your bond. This would mean that you would have to check in with a pretrial supervision officer (basically a probation officer) every other, or even every week, depending on your bond.

Invasion of Privacy
This essentially means that if you were convicted of DWI and placed on probation, you would then give the probation officer the right to come to your home, your work, ask you where you’ve been at any time, restrict your travel in an inconvenient manner, making it difficult to live a normal lifestyle. Most probation officers have your wellbeing as their reason for keeping a strict tab on your life, but it can be frustrating when a probation officer shows up unannounced at your workplace to make sure you're not drinking.

Loss of Freedom
Generally speaking, this is the most significant consequence that will be felt on a day to day basis in your life. You no longer have the ability to drink alcohol while you are on probation – not at home, not at a bar, and certainly not in any public venue. You have a list of about 26 different rules and regulations of probation from the most nebulous – “do not associate with any bad influences” – to the most practical – “meet with your probation officer once a month..” Probation is not impossible and most professionals are able to complete it very easily, but the biggest complaint that it is a bother, a hassle, and appears to be pointless. But it is designed to be a safety net in case there are problems. The inconvenience is what is most disconcerting to professionals.

Monitoring
In some cases, depending upon the severity or number of previous DWI’s, a judge can order the use of an ankle monitor and/or a supervised bond. This is done only in extreme situations, but it is not unheard of.

Ignition Interloc
In cases where there are subsequent DWI’s, the judge will require, and State law mandates, the use of an ignition interlock device in your car. This essentially means that you would never be able to drive to and from any location with a client, a date, or anyone else whom you would not be comfortable seeing you have to blow into a device in order to start your car, sometimes every 15 minutes.

Effect on Employment
Many employers will not hire someone who has a DWI conviction. Some companies look back a certain number of years for a criminal record. Also, a conviction may end your current employment. It is important not to mention you have been charged with a DWI to your employer until you have spoken with your attorney about the matter first. Know your rights and obligations before risking your job.

Effect on Travel
Some countries will bar your admission if you're an offender. Canada, for instance, will limit or bar admission into their country if a conviction is on your record. Foreign countries are more likely to ban admission completely if the offense is a felony. The attorneys at Sumpter and Gonzalez can help you with an application for limited admission, but the application process can take months to go through.

License suspension
A DWI arrest triggers not only a criminal case, but also an administrative case against the driver. If you were arrested for DWI, DPs will seek to suspend your license- meaning you cannot drive at all- for no less than 90 days and as much as 6 months, depending upon the facts in your case.

WE ARE NOT ATTEMPTING TO SCARE YOU! All we want to do is maintain your professional lifestyle / collegiate lifestyle / family structure and it is our job to maintain the freedom and independence that you have. These are some of our hurdles and these are hurdles that we have helped people over in the past. You need a good lawyer to predict, navigate, and guide you through these obstacles.